International
N’Korea sends troops to fight with Russia: Seoul
N’Korea sends troops to fight with Russia: Seoul
North Korea has started sending troops to fight with Russia in Ukraine, South Korea’s spy agency has said as Seoul warned of a “grave security threat”.
The allegation comes a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he believed 10,000 North Korean soldiers could join the war, based on intelligence information.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol called for a security meeting on Friday and said the international community must respond with “all available means”.
According to the spy agency, 1,500 troops have already arrived in Russia – with anonymous sources telling South Korean media the final figure could be closer to 12,000.
This comes as evidence mounts that North Korea is supplying Russia with ammunition, as recently demonstrated by the recovery of a missile in Ukraine’s Poltava region.
Moscow and Pyongyang have also been deepening their cooperation in recent months. Last week, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un greeted Russian President Vladimir Putin on his birthday, calling him his “closest comrade”.
Friday’s security meeting was attended by key officials from South Korea’s National Security Office, the Ministry of National Defence, and the National Intelligence Service, Yoon’s office said.
“[The participants] decided not to ignore the situation and to jointly respond to it with the international community using all available means,” it said.
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The allegation from the National Intelligence Service (NIS) comes days after Ukrainian military intelligence sources said that Russia’s army is forming a unit of North Koreans.
The BBC has asked the NIS for comment.
On Thursday, Ukraine’s spy chief Kyrylo Budanov claimed that there were nearly 11,000 North Korean infantry troops training in eastern Russia to fight in Ukraine.
“They will be ready [to fight in Ukraine] on 1 November,” Lt Gen Budanov, who heads the Ukrainian Defence Intelligence Directorate, told The Warzone website.
He added that the North Koreans would be using Russian equipment and ammunition, and the first group of 2,600 soldiers would be sent to Russia’s western Kursk region, where Ukraine holds a number of settlements after launching its incursion in August.
Earlier this week, Putin introduced a bill to ratify a military pact he made with Kim, which pledges that Russia and North Korea will help each other in the event of “aggression” against either country.
South Korea’s spy agency, the NIS, said North Korean troops are training in Russian bases in Vladivostok, Ussuriysk, Khabarovsk, and Vlagoveshensk.
This appears to confirm information from a military source in Russia’s Far East, who told BBC Russian this week that “a number of North Koreans have arrived” and were stationed in one of the military bases near Ussuriysk.
Seoul’s spy agency also released aerial photographs of Ussuriysk and Khabarovsk, where they say hundreds of North Korean troops have gathered, and another photo of North Korea’s Chongjin port, where a Russian ship was reportedly shown carrying North Korean soldiers.
The NIS said it found that since August, North Korea has sent 13,000 shipping containers carrying shells, missiles, and anti-armour rockets to Russia.
As many as eight million 122-mm and 152-mm shells have been supplied to Russia, it said.
However, some military experts believe the Russian military units will have difficulties incorporating North Korean troops into their frontlines.
Apart from the language barrier, the North Korean army has no recent experience of combat operations, they said.
“They could guard some sections of the Russian-Ukrainian border, which would free Russian units for fighting elsewhere,” said Valeriy Ryabykh, editor of the Ukrainian publication Defence Express.
“I would rule out the possibility that these units will immediately appear on the front line.”
N’Korea sends troops to fight with Russia: Seoul
BBC
International
Canada offers cybersecurity training with job placements for immigrants
Canada offers cybersecurity training with job placements for immigrants
The Canadian government, in collaboration with private sector partners, is offering a cybersecurity training programme in Calgary designed to support immigrants in securing employment in the growing tech industry.
The initiative provides hands-on learning and job placement opportunities in one of 16 entry-level cybersecurity roles. Participants will earn industry-recognized micro-credentials, equipping them with the skills needed to launch their careers.
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Funded by the Alberta Ministry of Jobs, Economy and Trade, the programme is delivered in partnership with ReTrain Canada and Manpower Canada. The 12-week training session, scheduled for March, will run Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Through this initiative, participants will gain expertise in cybersecurity fundamentals, encryption techniques, and applied penetration testing—all at no cost—while also receiving practical work experience to enhance their employability.
Canada offers cybersecurity training with job placements for immigrants
International
US ends legal status for 500,000 immigrants
US ends legal status for 500,000 immigrants
The United States said Friday it was terminating the legal status of hundreds of thousands of immigrants, giving them weeks to leave the country.
President Donald Trump has pledged to carry out the largest deportation campaign in US history and curb immigration, mainly from Latin American nations.
The order affects around 532,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans who came to the United States under a scheme launched in October 2022 by Trump’s predecessor Joe Biden and expanded in January the following year.
They will lose their legal protection 30 days after the Department of Homeland Security’s order is published in the Federal Register, which is scheduled Tuesday.
That means immigrants sponsored by the program “must depart the United States” by April 24 unless they have secured another immigration status allowing them to remain in the country, the order says.
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Welcome.US, which supports people seeking refuge in the United States, urged those affected by the move to “immediately” seek advice from an immigration lawyer.
The Processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans (CHNV) program, announced in January 2023, allowed entry to the United States for two years for up to 30,000 migrants per month from the four countries, which have grim human rights records.
Biden touted the plan as a “safe and humane” way to ease pressure on the crowded US-Mexico border.
But the Department of Homeland Security stressed Friday that the scheme was “temporary.”
“Parole is inherently temporary, and parole alone is not an underlying basis for obtaining any immigration status, nor does it constitute an admission to the United States,” it said in the order.
Trump last week invoked rare wartime legislation to fly more than 200 alleged members of a Venezuelan gang to El Salvador, which has offered to imprison migrants and even US citizens at a discount.
US ends legal status for 500,000 immigrants
AFP
International
UK announces new passport application fees starting April 2025
UK announces new passport application fees starting April 2025
The UK government has confirmed it will introduce new fees for passport applications beginning on April 10th, 2025.
The changes, which are still subject to parliamentary approval, will see a rise in costs for both online and paper applications, affecting adults and children alike.
According to the UK Home Office, the adjustments will apply to both domestic and overseas passport applications.
The fee increases, as stated, are part of an ongoing effort to ensure the passport system is financially self-sustaining, reducing the need for funding from general taxation. The Home Office clarified that the government does not make any profit from the fees.
Fee increases for domestic applications
Starting April 10th, 2025, the fee for a standard online application within the UK will rise for both adults and children. The cost for an adult’s application will increase from £88.50 to £94.50, while for children it will go up from £57.50 to £61.50.
Postal applications will also see an increase, with the adult fee rising from £100 to £107 and the child fee increasing from £69 to £74.
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Charges to premium service fees
The Premium Service, which allows for passport issuance within one day, will also become more expensive.
- For adults, the fee will rise from £207.50 to £222
- For children, the fee will increase from £176.50 to £189.
This service is available for those who need a passport urgently and are applying from within the UK.
Higher costs for overseas applications
For individuals applying from overseas, the standard online application fee will also increase;
- The adult fee will rise from £101 to £108, and the child fee will increase from £65.50 to £70
- For paper applications made abroad, the adult fee will rise from £112.50 to £120.50, while the child fee will increase from £77 to £82.50.
The Home Office stated that the new fees are necessary to maintain the passport service and ensure it is financially viable. The fees contribute to covering the cost of processing passport applications, offering consular support to UK citizens overseas, and managing UK border services.
“The fees contribute to the cost of processing passport applications, consular support overseas, including for lost or stolen passports, and the cost of processing British citizens at UK borders,” the office said.
It is also related that in 2024, 99.7% of standard applications from the UK were processed within three weeks, where no additional information was required. Customers are advised to apply well in advance of their travel plans to avoid delays.
These fee adjustments are in line with guidelines from HM Treasury, which regularly reviews passport fees.
UK announces new passport application fees starting April 2025
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